Acupressure for older people with cognitive impairment: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Zhang, Hongkun; Zhu, Luwen; Wu, Minmin; Song, Wenjing; Li, Jinting; Tang, Qiang; Zhang, Jiongliang

doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1548878

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article

Front. Psychiatry

Sec. Public Mental Health

Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1548878

This article is part of the Research Topic Exploration in Innovative Approaches to Understanding and Treating Mood Disorders: Evaluating Efficacy, Mechanisms, and Therapeutic Targets View all articles

Acupressure for older people with cognitive impairment: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Provisionally accepted

Hongkun Zhang ¹

¹ Second Affiliated Hospital, Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine, Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China
² Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine, Harbin, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

Cognitive impairment (CI) is becoming more common in the older population (≥60 years old) and has become a burden and challenge in an aging society.Acupressure is a non-invasive, safe, and cost-effective modality in Chinese medicine.Its therapeutic effects are achieved by stimulating specific points to restore balance in the flow of qi along the meridians, thereby enhancing the physiological functions of body systems and organs. This study aimed to conduct a meta-analysis to evaluate the effects of acupressure on cognitive function, mood, and activities of living (ADL) in older adults with CI.Methods: A comprehensive database search was performed using PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Sinomed, CNKI, Wanfang, and VIP databases to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) investigating the effects of acupressure versus non-acupressure in elderly patients with CI. We searched on June 6, 2024 for trials that met our predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria from database construction to the present. An additional search was conducted from June 6, 2024 to March 16, 2025. Data were extracted, the literature was reviewed, and the methodological quality of the included trials was assessed. A meta-analysis was performed using StataSE version 16.The meta-analysis included 1,101 patients from 14 RCTs. The Mini-Mental

Keywords: PROSPERO; identifier: CRD42024556579 Cognitive impairment, Acupressure, Cognition, mood, Elderly

Received: 20 Dec 2024; Accepted: 02 Apr 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Zhang, Zhu, Wu, Song, Li, Tang and Zhang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Jiongliang Zhang, Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine, Harbin, China

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